Listen up kids. Unless you don’t mind skateboarding becoming like soccer, football, baseball, or, heaven forbid, rollerblading, stop buying any Nike skate products right now.
I don’t believe there’s anything morally wrong with Nike’s businss approach to skateboarding, they’re business people and their job is to make more money. Skateboarding is an opportunity for them to do that. But as they succeed it will change the culture of skateboarding, and that’s something I don’t want to see happen and certainly don’t want to contribute to.
Feel free to buy their shoes for running, soccer, football, or your other mainstream sports, but if you’re buying or wearing Nike’s skateboard line, or especially sponsored by them, I’m sorry, but you’re a sellout.
In case the article disappears from it’s source, here is the text:
Skateboarding exec to lead new Nike sports culture initiative
The Portland Business Journal - March 3, 2006
Nike Inc. has named Sandy Bodecker, head of its skateboarding division, to serve as vice president of sports culture.
The newly created position aims to tap a youth market with clothing and footwear inspired by sports like skating, surfing and snowboarding.
Bodecker, 52, is a 23-year Nike veteran who helped establish Nike’s position in the global soccer market. Nike’s earnings from soccer today approach $1.5 billion. Most recently, Bodecker headed Nike’s skate business, overseeing product innovation and building relationships with skate retailers, athletes and consumers.
Skating has grown more mainstream and more fashion conscious in recent years, and Nike leaders are eyeing the area as an important growth opportunity.
Nike (NYSE: NKE), based near Beaverton, also has a rocky history with skateboarding. The company re-entered the skate niche in 2001 after it pulled out of the market in 1996. Nike also bought Savier in 2001– a small company th
Yeah
Check-out this SkateShops website:
http://www.downtownskatemi.com
They’re BIG on NIKE. Everyone on the Shop Team seems to wear them…
yeah its nice for nike to name a person who launched them into the lime light of soccer but skateboarding isnt soccer, we know they have tried and failed. plus i dont think this Bodecker will help them any.
What is this idiot talking about, of course skateboarding is becoming a mainstream sport. There is no valid reason for anyone to knock Nike for jumping at this lucritive indusrty just because they are not a skate based company. If your concern is the mainstream issue blame every company that profits from this sport (not just shoes either). This clown should do some research before he starts talking nonsense. It is a blessing this sport is becoming more mainstream, this guy is not down for the progress of skating. He just has beef with nike. If he knew anything about anything he would realize change is usually a good thing. We humans get better at doing things by finding new and more efficient methods.
nike actually was one of the first skateboarding shoes
so dont talk man
Nike bastardises everything it touches, and skaters should band together to kill Nike, it exploits the third world and is a bloody evil corporation. Remember what they did to Minor Threat? they’ll stop at nothing to milk money out of you, don’t help them along.
I don’t really understand the whole boycott Nike thing, if there @#$#% is good and it works use it, if it sucks and falls apart don’t. It’s as simple as that. I skate in nike shoes but not because I’m trying to help them take over skating but because they’re friggin’ comfortable.
I think it’s great that Nike is having a hard time getting acceptance in the skateboard culture. They will have to make a considerable controbution to the sport before they mix in. If I were them I would just get some skaters to start their own shoe and direction.
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Nike is the middle school rich kid poser shoe of choice. Anyone that skates for them is either in it for the money or a thug wannabe (which is still a poser no matter how good they are, you do not have to suck at skating to dress the dress and try to be the coolest looking person with absolutely no individuality.) The chinese made decks by companies like Plan B, Almost, enjoi, and most other “mainstream” companies…The sad thing is seeing them being sold as completes in Sports authority and dicks sporting goods for less than the price many shops can buy them for wholesale…Soon there will be no local skate shops and you will have to go to foot locker to get your skate shoes and Sporta Authority to get your Nike Skateboards (made by sexually abused Child slaves)